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October 12, 2007

CW Web site honored

Colonial Williamsburg’s comprehensive Web site has been recognized in five categories by the Web Marketing Association. Four nonprofit standard of excellence awards were presented for “Coins & Currency in Colonial America,” “Tour the Town,” “Colonial Williamsburg: Past & Present” and “Kids Zone.” The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation Web site was named an outstanding Web site.

“Coins & Currency in Colonial America” is an interactive online exhibit that examines the diverse types of money jingling in the pockets and purses of our colonial ancestors and how the varied coins they exchanged influenced the currency we carry today. A glossary, FAQ, timeline, relative scale and value charts, zooming capability and sidebars add layers of discovery to the expansive exhibit, found at www.history.org/history/museums/coinExhibit/.

“Pounds, Pence and Pistareens: The Coins and Currency of Colonial America” is currently exhibited at the DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum, presented through the generosity of Joseph R. and Ruth P. Lasser of New York.

“Tour the Town” is an interactive map of Colonial Williamsburg’s Historic Area that allows the user to “visit” the town by selecting a specific area of interest, such as trades, hotels, museums, shopping, dining or activities of interest to children. Users click and drag over the map and select a location to see an image or description and, for some locations, link to learn additional information from other areas of the Web site. Find “Tour the Town” at www.history.org/visit/tourTheTown.

Posted weekly, Colonial Williamsburg: Past & Present are podcasts that include conversations between former NBC News correspondent Lloyd Dobyns and a variety of individuals, including character interpreters or experts in archaeology, gardening, animal husbandry, architecture, folk art, historic trades and many other subjects. Colonial Williamsburg’s podcasts are available by listening to audio files directly from the Web site on a computer or by downloading to an mp3 player to enjoy later. The podcasts are available at www.history.org/media/podcasts.cfm.

“Kids Zone,” www.history.org/kids/, introduces young children to history and teaches them about life in colonial America by providing colorful characters, interactive games and activities designed to engage them in history.

The foundation’s mission-driven Web site, www.history.org, offers multiple navigation choices and showcases the depth and diversity of the site through the use of photographs, rotating promotional images for featured sections and a hotel booking option. An event calendar, expanded up-to-date “What’s New” section and drop-down menus provide direct access to a user’s area of interest. In addition to the above award-winning sections, the site offers a webcam, audio and video clips, additional online museum exhibits, live streaming Electronic Field Trips, interactive games, links to the journal of Colonial Williamsburg, a newsroom and special Internet hotel and ticket packages.

The Web Marketing Association is made up of Internet marketing, advertising, public relations and design professionals who share an interest in improving the quality of Web site development and marketing on the Internet. More than 2,400 sites from 40 countries were judged in 96 industry categories for this year’s competition. Entries were judged on design, copy writing, innovation, content, interactivity, navigation and use of technology.

“Kids Zone” was also recognized with an Outstanding Achievement award for excellence in design, development and implementation from the Interactive Media Awards (IMA). Judging consisted of criteria including design, usability, innovation in technical features, standards compliance and content. The award recognizes that the project met and surpassed standards of excellence and met strict guidelines in each area.

Interactive Media Awards are sponsored by the Interactive Media Council Inc., a nonprofit organization of leading Web designers, developers, programmers, advertisers and other Web-related professionals who seek to elevate the standards of excellence on the Internet.

Established in 1926, the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation is the not-for-profit educational institution that preserves and operates the restored 18th-century Revolutionary capital of Virginia as a town-sized living history museum, telling the inspirational stories of our nation’s founding men and women. Within the restored and reconstructed buildings, historic interpreters, attired as colonial men and women from slaves to shopkeepers to soldiers, relate stories of colonial Virginia society and culture – stories of our journey to become Americans – while historic trades people research, demonstrate and preserve the 18th-century world of work and industry. As Colonial Williamsburg interprets life in the time of the American Revolution for its guests, it also invites them to interact with history. Williamsburg is located in Virginia’s Tidewater region, 20 minutes from Newport News, within an hour’s drive of Richmond and Norfolk, and 150 miles south of Washington D.C., off Interstate 64. For more information about Colonial Williamsburg, call 1-800-HISTORY or visit Colonial Williamsburg’s Web site at www.history.org.